Quote of the day, 11 March: St. John of the Cross

Jesus be in your soul, my daughter in Christ.

I received your letter, which was an act of charity toward me, and I would very much like to comply with what you ask of me in it and thereby please you and your sisters.

But since God ordains things differently from what we may have in mind, we must conform ourselves to his will.

They have made me prior of this house in Granada, and it is a place very apt for the service of God. His Majesty does everything for the best. Would that you with your sisters lived here so that I could then in some way make you happy. I trust in God that he will give you great happiness.

Be careful that you do not stop going to confession, and tell the same to your sisters. May you all recommend me to God, for I will never forget to do so for you.

Don’t fail to have recourse to Father Fray Juan, [perhaps Fray Juan de Santa Ana] however tired he may be. Remain with God, and may His Majesty give you his Holy Spirit.

From Los Santos Mártires in Granada, March 1582

Your servant in Christ
Fray John of the Cross

Saint John of the Cross

Letter 2 to María de Soto, in Baeza

John of the Cross, St. 1991, The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross, Revised Edition, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K and Rodriguez, O with revisions and introductions by Kavanaugh, K, ICS Publications, Washington DC.